Machu Picchu!

Off to Machu Picchu tomorrow, on the Inca trail. Which we learned today we won´t really be on until the third day of the trek or so. (The real Inca trail starts in Cusco, which is about 80 km away...) But it will be amazing! It´s also known as the Lost City of the Incas, which was never discovered by the Spanish conquistadors. It was later 'discovered' in 1911 by American Hiram Bingham. Here´s some more info and pictures of what we´ll see. I´m hoping I´ll be less cold than in the Cordillera Blanca...

Little baby sea lions

At Gardner Beach. How close we could get to the little sea lions!

Finally, some photos!

A bit of a breather in Cusco. Though we´ve left, finally, some photos of Ecuador!
Here are some random pictures of Otavalo market and Cotocachi.

At the (little) equator!










Market stalls











Llama!

Cusco! Cusqo?

Made it to Cusco! Inca trail in a couple of days...

Hauraz was great and the mountains were beautiful. Survived the Santa Cruz trek - it was fantastic. But cold and wet. Though it makes the subsequent hot showers and warm beds all the better.

Am tired. Can only manage short sentences for now. More later?

Peru!

It was an epic journey, but we made it to Peru. Three (and a half) buses and many hours later, we arrived in Huarez, in the mountains. We met someone who'd been travelling for 3 days on cramped buses with chickens, so we couldn't complain too much. The last leg on the little 'Mercedes Benz' bus was incredible and breath-taking. Both for the view of the mountains, and the crazy driving on the dirt mountain roads only inches from the cliff edge...

It's cold here, and we're still adjusting to the altitude. We may venture on a trek (hopefully?). We also seem to have arrived coinciding with a festival. It's Peru's national holiday in a few days, but someone also mentioned it's the start of the Mayan new year?

Waterfalls

Here´s a picture of one of the waterfalls we swam under in the Jungle!

We´re off to Peru today!

Boobies

This is what a blue-footed boobie looks like! A friend´s shot, for now.

Next stop: Peru. It´s going to be a long trek, but we´re going to somehow make it from Montañita to Huaraz (which I hear is a trekker´s paradise). We´ve been spoiled, living in the lap of luxury and soaking up the sun. Time for some trekking?

I love sea turtles

The Galapagos Islands were amazing. Words cannot describe how incredible it was. With a bit of luck and last minute-ness (sometimes it pays to be last minute), we got an incredible deal on a luxury 8-day cruise around the islands. It really was the way to go. Though I did confirm that I suffer from seasickness (if you come, and do get seasick, bring lots of seasickness pills to help you out...).

I´m sure everyone knows how Charles Darwin´s journey to the Galapagos in the 19th century was key to formulating his theory of evolution. Animals are similar to those on the mainland, but just that little bit different. Tortoises seem to have developed longer necks, cormorants smaller wings. And because they haven´t had to adapt to many human predators, they are so tame. You can walk right up to a blue-footed boobie (it´s a bird, Grez), and instead of flying away, he´ll walk towards you and do his funny dance. The boobie dance (Alicia can show you).

We started in San Cristobal Island, and visited Espanola, Floreana, Santa Cruz, Isabella, Fernandina and Bartolome. Isabella and Fernandina, the islands furthest west, are also the youngest. And for me, the best. Most of the islands are uninhabited, but for San Cristobal, Santa Cruz, Floreana and Isabella. (Yes, people actually live on these amazing islands!)

I got my wish: I swam with sea turtles! They were so beautiful. And so big! But they just went about their business paying us no heed, while we snorkelled but centimetres away from them. We also swam with sea lions (one might call it magical :P) and penguins! And fish, of course. Poor fish, they took a back seat to the sea turtles. Even the reef sharks.

The lava islands were pretty incredible. The landscape looked so barren. But then you´d see a lagoon, with flamingos! We also saw tons of iguanas: marine iguanas, land iguanas, hybrids. And sally light-foot crabs, and finches, and stilts, gulls, boobies, and albatrosses doing their funny sword-play with their beaks. Did I tell you how amazing it is?

Alas, paradise had to end. We are now back on the mainland. Having to fend for ourselves, not being fed three-course meals three times a day. And actually having to plan our own itinerary! We´re on the south west coast of Ecuador now. Maybe we´ll see some whales? And then it´s off to Peru, where we´ll realize how unfit we are and how badly I packed as we brave the treks and the cold!

Galapagos!

Off to the Galapagos today, which celebrated its 50th anniversary of the founding of the Charles Darwin Foundation and designation as a national park and protected area. For some more info, you can look here.

I´m hoping to see giant tortoises, some penguins, flamingos, sea lions, boobies (the bird!) and sharks! Apparently the animals are so tame and unafraid of humans you can get really really close!

Shrunken heads

Am in Cuenca, an old colonial town in Ecuador with cobbelstone streets and a plethora of churches. Visited one of the museums yesterday where we saw shrunken heads. And yes! They really were miniature shrunken human heads, a ritual that used to be practiced by the Shuar tribe. Now they just shrink the heads of sloths. Next stop Guayaquil, then Galapagos!!

Banos

We made it to Banos, after a whirlwind tour of the Old City in Quito. The journey from the New Town to the Old was delayed a bit due to a couple of protests on the way...protests against the government, we were told.

A journey south for about three hours, and we left the sprawl of the big city to the quaintness of the mountain resort of Banos, known for its spas or baths. It's lovely here, but I'm beginning to realize that I hadn't prepared for the rain, the dampness and the cold...

And tomorrow...the jungle...

Bikes, Sundays and staying within 5 blocks...

Sunday is a quiet day. Amazonas was blocked off to traffic, and everyone was on bikes - lovely. Shops were closed. Streets were quiet. We didn´t go far, but we managed to sort out a Galapagos trip!

We´re off to Banos next! I hear they have spas there...

Made it!

Made it to Ecuador...after the most ridiculous route - Toronto - Washington - Miami - and finally Quito!

I hadn´t realized Quito was at altitude (2850m) until we got here...

Without any real plans, we ventured out for the day and hired a taxi to take us out of town, visiting the market at Otavalo, the Laguna de Cocachi where we realized it´s not really that warm as we set off on a boat around the lagoon (which incidentally sits atop a formerly active volcanoe, or something along those lines! I couldn´t quite understand the Spanish, then German translations on the boat...), and finally the leather markets at Cotacachi. It was rough, but it´s probably a good thing this is the start of the trip!

And today...Quito! New Town, Old Town, perhaps an angel at the top of the hill?

And we're off!

We're off to South America!
First stop: Ecuador!

Happy Canada Day!

Happy Canada Day! That is all.